The Most Viewed News Stories of 2025

Rob Reiner, Michele Singer, Romy Reiner, Nick Reiner, Maria Gilfillan and Jake Reiner at “Spinal Tap II: The End Continues” Los Angeles Premiere held at The Egyptian Theatre on September 09, 2025 in Los Angeles, California.

Photo by Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images

Close friends since high school, comedian Albert Brooks and Rob Reiner made a documentary together in 2024.

Photo Credit: Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Image

***

What a tumultuous year 2025 has been.

I don’t recall seeing such a violent year as the one that has taken place over the last several months.

On September 10, Charlie Kirk, a right-wing activist, and influential supporter of President Trump, was executed at a campus event in Utah.

On December 13, a mass shooting struck at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, during the second day of final examination week for the fall semester. As widely reported, a gunman entered the school and killed two students, while wounding nine other students as they attended a review session in preparation for final exams.

Around the same time (December 14^th) a father and son opened fire on a Hanukkah celebration at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, killing 15 people and injuring more than 40. The gunmen claimed to be motivated by “Islamic State ideology.”

Normally, at this time of year, I like to give a brief overview of the greatest hits, the highs and lows of the year.

But with the horrific slashing of the throats of film director Rob Reiner and wife Michele Singer Reiner at their L.A. residence, feasibly at the hands of their son, Nick, in a drug induced rage, it’s hard to focus on much anything else.

I’m trying hard (mostly without success) to wean myself off of social media these days. Every post on X, Threads, Instagram, et al., it seems, centers on Rob Reiner. I go to bed, having trouble erasing the memory of Rob and all the magnificent moments of his storied career since 1971 from my mind; when in his early 20s, he made his debut on the CBS sitcom, “All in the Family” as Mike Stivic, known affectionally to us all as “Meathead.”

And then, beginning with mockumentary comedy film, “This is Spinal Tap” (1984), segueing into directing some of the most memorable films of our era, including “Stand by Me”, “When Harry Met Sally”, “A Few Good Men”, the “American President,” and a host of other films, projects, interviews, and acting roles.

And though not everybody agreed with Reiner’s widely known political activism and zealous opinions, we knew one thing for certain: his liberalism came straight from the heart.

He was passionate about so many ideals and principles this country was founded on, among them–individual freedom, consent of the governed, and madly distrustful of autocratic rule.

When the celebrated director saw President Donald Trump dismantle many of those tenets of democracy since assuming office, he became more vocal about his concerns, but he remained the same person: a kindhearted, generous, loveable actor/director, who enjoyed his friends, adored his wife and children, and cared deeply for the welfare of others.

Other than Donald Trump, I can’t imagine Rob had many enemies before he departed this world.

The President of the United States, a day after Reiner and his wife were savagely murdered, went on a social media rant, railing against the director, during a time when Reiner’s children (Romy and Jake) and close friends didn’t need vitriol, but words of compassion and comfort during their time of grief.

Nonetheless, Trump wrote that Reiner’s death was “reportedly due to the anger he caused others through… a mind crippling disease known as TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME.”

“He was known to have driven people CRAZY by his raging obsession of President Donald J. Trump,” the president wrote in a post on Truth Social.

Later at the White House, Trump said “I wasn’t a fan of his at all. He was a deranged person as far as Trump is concerned.”

Thanks Mr. President.

In addition to the Reiner’s painful, horrific murder and the Charlie Kirk execution, there were other significant events that took place during the year.

To help us remember some of the major issues driving the news cycle over the last year, I asked some news organizations and popular websites what story or feature generated the most page views on their websites for 2025.

Here are the results from some of the kind folks who got back with me.

Wall Street Journal

Jeffrey Epstein’s Friends Sent Him Bawdy Letters for a 50th Birthday Album. One Was From Donald Trump.

Los Angeles Times

What happened during the first four days of the Eaton, Palisades fires in Southern California

Celeste Rivas went missing a year ago. Her decomposing body was found in singer D4vd’s Tesla

Fire hydrants ran dry as Pacific Palisades burned. L.A. city officials blame ‘tremendous demand’

ICE raids across L.A. spark backlash; Trump officials vow to continue operations

Economist

Two of the Economist’s three most-read articles were on a demographic theme:

Why Gen X is the Real Loser

Why people over the age of 55 are the new problem generation.

And three of the others were – lo and behold – predictions that turned out to be correct.

Donald Trump will upend 80 years of American foreign policy.

President Trump’s mindless tariffs will cause economic havoc.

Donald Trump’s awful trade policy will outlast him.

CNN

CNN’s Most Read Story of 2025: Breaking News Reporting of Charlie Kirk’s Assassination

CNN’s Most Watched Video of 2025: Oval Office argument between Zelensky, Trump and Vance.

FOX NEWS

Fox News’ most viewed article was their live blog following the assassination of Charlie Kirk.

The Times (London)

Some of the most viewed items from the Times (London) for 2025

Man’s body found in floods as major incidents declared.

Trump backs ‘regime change’ in Iran after airstrikes — as it happened.

Gene Hackman and wife Betsy Arakawa deaths ‘suspicious’

Tehran fires ballistic missiles at Tel Aviv — as it happened

‘It’s not that the King won’t speak to Prince Harry — he can’t’

The Telegraph (UK)

North Korea steals $1.5bn as it pulls off world’s biggest ever heist

Russia bombs US factory in one of war’s largest attacks.

The Atlantic

The Trump Administration Accidentally Texted Me Its War Plans

By Jeffrey Goldberg

The Hollywood Reporter

Ten Years Before Rob and Michele Reiner Were Killed in Their Home, Rob Made a Movie About the Family’s Tensions, Including With Son Nick

And..

Steven Zeitchik’s follow up piece: “I Sat Down to Dinner With Rob, Michele and Nick Reiner. It Was Heartwarming and Jarring. “

New York Magazine

There is No Safe Word

The Therapy That Can Break You: Internal Family Systems is a widely popular trauma treatment. Some patients say it’s destroyed their lives. By Rachel Corbett, a features writer at New York Magazine

John Fetterman’s Struggle By Ben Terris

Vox

Exclusive: RFK Jr. and the White House buried a major study on alcohol and cancer. Here’s what it shows.

The broligarchs have a vision for the new Trump term. It’s darker than you think. The real reason Musk, Zuckerberg, and Bezos are supporting Trump.

The real reason Trump is destroying the economy: Trump is imposing ruinous tariffs because American democracy is no longer strong enough to stop him.

ProPublica

The Militia and the Mole (How a Mole Infiltrated the Highest Ranks of American Militias) by Joshua Kaplan

The Marshall Project

The most viewed Marshall Project story published in 2025 was “Why Doesn’t the U.S. Government Know How Many People Die in Custody? “Under the Death in Custody Reporting Act, the government is supposed to track how many people die in law enforcement custody — but the data is a mess.”

The most viewed TMP story published in 2025 was “Getting a Single Parking Ticket in Lorain Led Hundreds to Lose Their Driver’s Licenses”: A Marshall Project – Cleveland investigation has prompted city officials to stop issuing parking citations that, for years, led to license suspensions.

The most viewed TMP story of the year, which was published in 2024, was “Fact-checking Over 12,000 of Donald Trump’s Quotes About Immigrants”

And..

Some of the Marshall Projects Best Work of 2025

The DailyBeast

Trump Appoints 22-Year-Old Ex-Gardener and Grocery Store Assistant to Lead U.S. Terror Prevention

Here’s Why Michelle Obama Was Nowhere to Be Seen at Jimmy Carter’s Funeral

Trump Gets Called Out in Front of Millions at Pope’s Funeral

Trump Humiliated in the ‘Most Powerless Image Ever’ of a U.S. President: O’Donnell

Buzzfeed

“Not Even Thoughts And Prayers Anymore. Just ‘Go F Yourself’” — People Are Floored By Donald Trump’s Response To The FSU Shooting

BBC

“I will never let your legacy die’ Charlie Kirk’s widow gives tearful address after shooting”